A large percentage of warehouses and factories maintain racking systems of one kind or another, and in particular maintain pallet racking systems. Typically, such racking systems may employ vertical trusses of linear upright members, herein collectively referred to as uprights, which interlock with orthogonal horizontal cross-beams, herein referred to as beams, so as to form a rack frame for supporting shelves, pallets and the like. Such uprights may weigh in the order of 500 pounds.
In the environment of a warehouse or factory, forklifts are often used to elevate pallets of goods and to place the pallets into the racking system. Occasionally, the forklifts collide with the racking system and in particular the uprights thereby resulting in damage to the uprights and in particular to the upright members exposed at the front of the rack. As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, a damaged upright must be replaced rather than risk the load bearing capabilities of the damaged upright being compromised. A compromised upright may, when loaded, collapse causing a failure of the racking system.
In applicant's experience, typically when uprights are to be replaced in a racking system, or when the racking system requires adjustment, inexperienced employees may be contracted to complete the work. Applicant has observed that such workers may take two-three hours to replace a single upright.
Consequently there exists a need in the prior art for, and it is an object of the present invention to provide, a tool for use when replacing uprights in pallet racking systems so as to make replacement of damaged uprights more efficient to thereby reduce the man-hours required to change out an upright are thereby reduced. The tool may also assist in reducing the number of accidents incurred while working on upright change outs, for example, in situations where the uprights, once unsecured from the racking system, workers have been known to fall and be injured attempting to repair the racking system.
There is also a need in the prior art for, and it is one object of the present invention to provide, a rack disassembly tool which will be fit for use on most if not all of conventional widely-used pallet racking systems commonly known in that art, for example, those racking systems sold under the trade-marks Speedrack™, Rigurack™, Teardrop™, Unarco II™, Structural™, Paltier™, Keystone™, and Sturdibuilt™. It is an object that the rack disassembly tool according to the present invention cooperate with such pallet racking systems to assist in the change out of damaged uprights or in the adjustment of the racking system without any modifications to the racking systems being required in order that the tool be successfully employed.